The popularity of electric vehicles has been growing rapidly due to several reasons, from government subsidies to environmental sensitivity. Climate change plays an even bigger role in this switch to electric. Electric vehicles can help the US diversify their fuel choices for transport, especially as the US uses on average nine billion barrels of petroleum a year, with two-thirds of this being used towards transportation. This reliance on one specific fuel means that the country is more susceptible to price fluctuations, which could end up causing disruptions with the supply chain.
About Electric Vehicles
Due to almost all the electricity in the US produced domestically, electric vehicles help reduce this vulnerability. The number of electric vehicles across the US is just under 1.8 million, with 328,000 of these electric vehicles sold in 2020. The University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute carried out a study in 2018 and found that to operate an electric car would cost you almost half as much money as it would operate a gas-powered car. Similarly, the average cost to operate an electric vehicle in the US is $485 per year, compared to $1,117 for a gas-powered vehicle.
There are many different electric vehicles on the roads, from plug-in electric vehicles, with battery packs recharged from the electric grid to hybrid electric vehicles that use both gasoline and battery packs. These electric battery packs are restored to full charge by connecting to an electric outlet.
About Revel and Its Electric Mopeds
Revel is an electric moped startup business founded in 2018 by Frank Reig and Paul Suhey in New York City. The company originally started with a pilot program to rent mopeds to see whether it would be financially beneficial for them and later expanded to other states. Revel now operates 5,000 electric mopeds across America in New York City, Miami, Washington, and the San Francisco Bay area.
Despite their success, Revel has had a cloudy relationship with renting mopeds, and several legal setbacks mean they have faced scrutiny. They made it simple for people to rent one of their easy-access mopeds when everyone didn’t always have the skills to ride them on the roads safely. Furthermore, it could be that Revel is reevaluating its business priorities by pursuing other means so that the company has time to regroup and change how the public perceives them.
It should be worth noting that Revel does not own any of their own mopeds but leases them from other companies, and Revel’s expansion into charging stations is its first new product line since their moped launch in 2018. This electric charging hub is the first one planned by Revel and will promote the use of electric vehicles across the US.
The Electric Moped Rental and EV Charging Business
Revel follows their same strategy as with their moped business and is subcontracting the RTM75 system developed by Tritium. These chargers will provide level three fast charging and have been found by Revel to provide charge for up to 100 miles in 20 minutes. Revel’s electric vehicle charging site will be available for cars to access around the clock, and these chargers are compatible with all models of electric vehicles.
Revel wants to create a full-fledged electric transport company, as the demand for electric charging stations continues to grow and become more popular, with the company’s expansion into charging stations coming from renewed efforts in the United States to move away from gasoline-powered cars. The change comes as a growing number of car creators adding more electric vehicles to the types of cars they produce, including companies like General Motors, Ford, and Volkswagen.
Emission Reduction and Energy Usage in Production
Plug-in electric vehicles can not only reduce emissions. Still, they can save you money, especially as using electricity as a fuel offers some advantages not available in gas-powered vehicles. Electric motors react quicker than conventional ones, and they are incredibly responsive and have more power than gas cars. In the digital age, electric vehicles are more compatible with electronic devices than their conventional counterparts.
Regarding the climate change issue, electric vehicles also reduce the emissions that largely contribute to smog and pollution, improving public health and reducing further ecological damage that has already been done.
Furthermore, by charging your vehicle using renewable energy, for example, solar power or wind power, you can reduce these emissions even further.
However, manufacturers should consider that making electric vehicles uses a lot of energy, and the emissions created tend to be more than those created for a conventional car. This is due to the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries, an essential part of an electric car. More than a third of the lifetime CO2 emissions from an electric car come from the energy used to make the car itself.
The Future of Electric Scooters and Revel
As technology advances, and with more efficient manufacturing techniques, the number of emissions created during the production of lithium-ion batteries will improve. Therefore, even after considering the amount of energy it takes to manufacture the vehicle’s battery, electric cars are still the greener option.
Reusing and recycling batteries is also a growing market and should be considered. Research into using second-hand batteries is looking at ways to reuse batteries in new ways, such as storing electricity. Opportunities like this will mean that manufacturers will reduce the lifetime environmental impact of battery manufacture.
Revel will make electric vehicles more accessible by broadening their business pursuits due to the wider availability of charging stations. If charging stations are available in more places, this will increase the popularity, especially as more and more people want to help with climate change issues. Similarly, this will place Revel in a more favorable position with their moped company. With the COVID-19 pandemic, public members haven’t wanted to use vehicles that other people have used, and Revel could eventually become more popular when it is safe to travel again.
